I find the game too hard! Can I have some cheat codes?

We do have a code section here at IGN, but we’ll give you a couple useful ones here. First, press CTRL + SHIFT + C to bring up the cheat console. Then, type in “motherlode” without quotes, and your active family will gain $50,000 instantly. Another useful code is “resetSim” without quotes, followed by a space, followed by the first and last name of a Sim. This code will basically reset the Sim back to his home in the event he gets stuck somewhere or gets caught in a loop.

Another famous one that has come back is “moveObjects” followed by a space and “on” or “off.” Turning it on allows you to ignore the game’s rules on object placement, so you can stick a bed through a wall, for example. If you do place an item “illegally,” it may not be usable, like our theoretical bed through a wall. The main purpose of moveObjects, in my eyes, is that you can fix mistakes when Sims or objects get stuck.

What’s the point of buying groceries if I can just buy meals from the fridge?

Groceries are for planting crops for your garden, and you can only get them at the grocery store. Plus, groceries are better ingredients for cooking compared to just buying the meal outright, so your meals will turn out better that way.

Okay, so I bought some groceries. Now what?

Groceries are in the inventory of the Sim who actually bought them. You can leave them there, but only that Sim will be able to use them, rather than the whole family. To make the groceries usable by the whole household, you’ll have to put the groceries into the fridge. To do this, once the shopper Sim is home, open his Inventory Panel, then you can click-drag the ingredients onto the fridge. The fridge doesn’t have to be open, and you don’t need to be in Buy Mode or anything.

You no longer have to click-drag every single item, thankfully. If you bought 20 cheeses, then you have to click-drag the little button in the top-left corner of the cheese icon, and you'll drag all 20 in a single stack.

Do I have to place objects on the grid in my house?

Nope. Just hold the ALT key as you move the object around, and you can place it wherever you want, provided the object remains usable. This unfortunately doesn’t work in Build Mode.

Do Sims remember which bed is theirs?

Yes, and they usually remember which side of a double bed they sleep on (though under free will, the Sim often doesn't care). If you’re actually controlling them, there really is no difference for a Sim using a different bed; it just gives the Sims a target when the AI sends them off to bed.

Are there any useful hotkeys you haven’t told me about yet?

Your game should have come with a quick reference card, but one of the most useful shortcut keys is the camera bookmark. Hold CTRL, and press 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 to set the bookmark. Then when you hit the number again, the camera will jump back to wherever it was when you set it. You can reset them as many times as you want, too.

Another good hotkey set is the greater-than and less-than keys (or the comma and period keys, if you prefer), as they will rotate objects in Buy Mode by 45 degrees, and wall coverings and carpets by 90 degrees. Also, you can hold the ALT key to place objects off the grid in Buy Mode.

Do I really have to do my homework?

Only if you want to have maximum job performance, which of course guarantees that you can pick another trait. A high Logic skill allows the Sim to complete the homework faster, and asking for help from a parent or doing homework with another student helps too. There are some further shortcuts, such as the fact that you can copy your homework from someone else’s, whether a sibling in the same house or a friend. However, there is a chance your teacher will catch this, which will result in detention.

What is this detention you speak of?

It’s just a minor penalty where your Sim kid is held in school for a few hours after the school day concludes. It can happen if your Sim falls asleep in class (from being too tired when they go to school), or if they cheat on homework. The only massive downside to this is that the time penalty may stop a teen Sim from going to his part-time job, resulting in demotion or termination.

Fish, insects, gems, metals, meteors... there’s a lot of stuff to collect in The Sims 3, but is any of it really going to help me?

The collectable objects in the game are mainly for decoration. Displaying any insect or gem will give the room a decent boost to its hidden environment score, possibly activating the Decorated or Very Decorated buff. The more advanced the object is—the more advanced the cut of the gem, or the more rare the butterfly—the greater the bonus.

One of the best places to go for rare stuff is the mausoleum in the graveyard, but it’s random what (if anything) you get out of there. To find stuff otherwise, you just need to keep your eyes peeled on the ground. Insects, especially beetles, can be very tiny and hard to spot. Note that collectables tend to appear near public buildings, especially those far away from the houses. Stonehenge is a popular place for collectables too, though you’ll have to give a manual “Go Here” command to get there, as the area isn’t flagged as a community lot.

I hate my name, but I have no way to change it!

This time around? You can change it! Just grab the Sim whose name you wish to change, then head over to City Hall. You can then change that Sim’s name for free.

How do I get started with the new skills?

To start the Photography skill, you need any camera (other than your cell phone) and just need to take pictures. To start the Martial Arts skill, you’ll need to head to China and work out on the training dummy object. To start the Nectar Making skill, you’ll need to go to France and squish a few grapes using a nectar machine.

Alternatively to any method here, all new skills have books that you can read to get started. Martial Arts tools can be found in China, better cameras can be found in Egypt, and everything concerning Nectar Making can be found in France.

When should I change what board my Sim attempts to break when he trains in Martial Arts?

Watch the number of boards your Sim is attempting to break: he can break up to five of any given type. If he’s attempting to break three of a given type, you can probably move up a level to the next difficult board except for the highest difficulty. Remember, they go Foam, Balsa Wood, Oak, Thin Stone, and Space Rock in that order.

Once he gets to thin stone boards, you may want to keep him doing that until he is able to break all five together, as he will still have trouble with even a single space rock board until then. Once he does start breaking space rock boards, always do so, as you’ll get a random gem whenever you break it. Remember though to keep the Sim’s mood as high as possible: low moods increase the chance of failure even if his Martial Arts skill is high.

Do the new incense holders do anything?

Other than giving a basic incense buff, if Sims can smell incense in the same room, they will gain a minor secondary benefit. The incense holder from China increases skill gain rates, the one from Egypt slows the decay of the Fun meter (so it’s best placed in the Sim’s office so he can write or work from his computer without stress), and the one from France increases the chance of romantic social interactions passing and thus increases the rate of relationship gain. Of course, they do no good without incense, so keep those fires burning; once started, the incense holder burns until you give the command to stop.

Where are my gems I mailed?

If you mailed some gems or metals to get cut from your vacation home, then they’ll be mailed back to your vacation home. It’s probably best to cut or smelt stuff back at your main home unless you’re still planning on being in your vacation home for awhile.

Am I required to place the new community buildings if I start up the expansion in an old neighborhood?

You are not required to do so, no, but without the new buildings, you’ll lose access to some of the new careers. You can always build your own firehouse or whatever, but until there is a firehouse somewhere in your neighborhood, you can’t be a firefighter.

What’s the point of laundry? Do I really care?

Laundry basically just gives your Sims another chore to do around the house for the sake of making the game more realistic. Doing laundry regularly gives your Sims some decent buffs for minimal work, which is always nice. Honestly, considering how short of time it takes to do laundry, it’s worth every Sim doing it.

Fair enough, but I’m tired of my Sims leaving piles of clothes everywhere. Any way to control that?

Having a hamper in the room will usually have the Sim automatically deposit the clothes when he changes, unless the hamper is full, or the Sim has the Slob trait. It’s best to have a hamper in any room where changing is common, meaning the bedroom and bathroom (and, possibly, in a workout room). If piles of clothes appear in other places or things are just getting sloppy, you yourself can manually put the clothes in the hampers. Just do a click-drag on the clothes and release over the hamper, as if you’re putting leftovers in the fridge or books back on the bookshelf.

My Sim is upset that his surroundings are dirty, but everything is clean! Is this a bug?

Nope. With the Pets expansion, EA added a mechanic that furniture could become damaged, usually because cats or dogs scratch it up. Sims, especially those with the Neat trait, will gain the Dirty Surroundings debuff if they're in a room that has been scratched up, but won't give you any further details.

Even if you have Medium- or High-level textures set in the options, it might be tough to notice. You'll have to zoom your camera pretty far in and look for telltale scratch marks. Luckily, the game gives you a quick shortcut to deal with it: simply click the object with any human Sim, and you can select the Replace command. You'll be charged the full price of the object, but it will be instantly replaced with a new version with the exact same color and pattern scheme. Do this for all the broken furniture, and your Sim should be happy again.

Note that Sims with the Slob trait don't care, but any visitors may be unnecessarily upset. You'll need to stay on top of the furniture condition, especially if you have a lot of pets.